Mating electrical connectors often are provided with complementarily mating male and female terminals or contacts. The female terminal provides a receptacle or socket for the male terminal. Male terminals are provided in a variety of configurations, ranging from flat blades, to solid pins, to stamped and formed components having flexible beams and other similar constructions.
One type of male terminal is constructed with a plurality of cantilevered beams surrounding an open area therebetween, whereby the beams can flex inwardly when inserted into a female terminal and thereby exert outwardly directed contact forces between the terminals. Normally, such male terminals, of the cantilevered beam construction, are unitarily fabricated of stamped and formed sheet metal material.
One of the problems with male terminals of the cantilevered beam configuration is that the beams may become over-stressed in an inward direction and thereby lose their resilient capabilities of exerting outwardly directed contact forces. In other words, the beams can become overly bent inwardly toward one another. This overstressing can occur during handling, shipping, abusive use or even in subsequent manufacturing operations after the terminal is formed, such as plating and like processes.
This invention is directed to solving such problems by providing a male terminal with cantilevered contact beams which are provided with complementarily interengaging anti-overstress means therebetween.